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…that occurred to me as I watched the dedication of the Billy Graham Library on TV this afternoon. 
1. Oh, those poor people. It’s SO HOT!!
2. I wonder where Amanda is sitting?
3. Billy looks sad to be there without Ruth.
4. Oh, that’s what Governor Easley looks like. (too much NPR…no pictures!)
5. I’d like to see Bill Clinton and Al Mohler in a formal debate on “What it Means to be a Southern Baptist.”
6. One of the reasons I love George H.W. Bush is that he pokes fun at himself a lot.
7. Where’s Amanda?!
8. OH WOW! JOEL OSTEEN IS THERE!!!! ( you can decide if that’s excitement, shock or dismay)
9. George Beverly Shea is 98 and he still sings like that?! That’s amazing!!
10. Good for Billy for saying it’s not about him. The Lord has used him to be sure, but God deserves all the glory.
“And give Him the glory, great things He has done…”
Televised on ABC tonight will be the finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee. I’m a fan. I’ve always thought that maybe I would get our kids into it. 
Last year, after watching the bee, I read American Bee: The National Spelling Bee and the Culture of Word Nerds. If you have “word nerd” in your background, I highly recommend it…it was an excellent book, and very entertaining. The author recounts the history of the English (American) language, and talks about the roots of the spelling bee as we now know it. He then follows five top competitors through their preparation process, early competition, and finally, the national bee.
To be honest, I don’t know if David and I have it in us to be spelling bee parents. What a pressure cooker on your little kid. I think David would have to stay in the hotel because of his nerves, and when our kid got out I would start an argument with the judges over the word’s root language or something. They would probably have to remove me.
But even if you’re not a “word nerd,” turn the competition on tonight. You’ll be amazed at the skill that these students have. To hear a word, properly understand how its context in a sentence and its roots affect its spelling, and calmly recite its proper spelling in front of blazing TV lights, cameras, and an audience of millions (not to mention the hundreds sitting in front of you, most of whom also know how to spell the word!) is an amazing skill and is a tribute to the children’s and parents’ dedicated study.
Confession: I still feel a little pat on my back when I run spell-checker and it says “No Misspellings Found.”
to read this post at Titus2talk. You won’t be sorry.
Mommy and boys praying before bed. Mommy prays for all four boys by name, asking the Lord to make them men who love His word and want to obey Him. She prays for the Lord, if He chooses, to bring them wives who love the Lord so that their families will glorify Him.
After the prayer is over, she looks up to see a teary Ben in the top bunk.
Ben: But when we are grown up to be men, why can’t we stay in the same family?
Mommy: Well, when you grow up you will probably want to have your own family, but I will always be your mommy and Daddy will always be your daddy.
(Ben is not convinced and continues at the brink of tears.)
Mommy: You can come visit us anytime you’d like, but you can have your own wife and your own little children, and be a daddy and a husband just like Daddy!
Ben: OK.
Mommy: But it’s a long time until you have to leave, Ben.
Cameron: Yes, we have a lot of fun birthdays before then!! And Christmas…(trails off, no doubt anticipating many presents)
Ben (now completely recovered): OK, goodnight, Mom.
1. O come and mourn with me awhile,
O come ye to the Savior’s side
O come, together let us mourn,
Jesus our Lord is crucified.
2. Seven times He spake seven words of love;
And all three hours His silence cried
For mercy on the souls of men;
Jesus our Lord is crucified.
Chorus: O love of God! O sin of man!
In this dread act Your strength is tried;
And victory remains with love;
Jesus our Lord is crucified!
3. O break, O break, hard heart of mine!
Thy weak self-love and guilty pride
His Pilate and His Judas were:
Jesus our Lord is crucified.
4. A broken heart, a fount of tears,
Ask, and they will not be denied;
A broken heart love’s cradle is:
Jesus our Lord is crucified.
And victory remains with love;
Jesus our Lord is crucified!
After a long vacation, this series has returned to Fridays. 
If you would like to read the previous entries, scroll down to see my “labels” in my sidebar and click on “Mothers of the Wise and Good.”
Today’s chapter was on John Newton and his mother. Newton was yet another child to be blessed by a godly, devout mother only to lose her early in his life. She died when he was six. Lest we think that her influence on her son was minimal, however, we can listen to his praise of her:
“When I was four years old, I could read (hard words excepted) as well as I can now; and could likewise repeat the answers to the questions in the ‘Assembly’s Shorter Catechism,’ with the Scripture proofs; and all Dr. Isaac Watts’ smaller catechisms, with his children’s hymns.”
While his mother may serve as a positive example, his father may teach us by his negative one. “His father was too stern, and kept him in a state of fear and bondage. His distance and severity greatly lessened his parental influence, and powerfully inclined the youth to break the yoke of early discipline, and to forsake the way of God.”
Newton, as the author of “Amazing Grace,” should be familiar to us all, but if you do not know the story of his conversion aboard a ship bound for England, please refer to the biographical article at the end of this post. I must highlight a few of Newton’s quotes here:
On praying for the Holy Spirit’s help during his conversion:
Upon this I reasoned thus — if this book be true, the promise in this passage [Luke 11:13; speaking of the Father giving the "good gift" of the Holy Spirit] must be true likewise. I have need of that very Spirit, by which the whole was written, in order to understand it aright. He has engaged here to give that Spirit to those who ask: I must therefore pray for it; and, if it be of God, he will make good on his own word.
(Here I love the perfect intersection of spiritual transformation and mental enlightenment. God calls individuals using mind and spirit!)
Newton was ordained bishop of Lincoln in 1764 and ministered for more than forty years. He exercised care over his congregation as well as the poor and destitute of the community.
On the constant interruptions to his studies:
I should be glad, indeed, to do greater things, but I will not neglect this. When I hear a knock at my study door, I hear a message from God. It may be a lesson of instruction; perhaps, a lesson of patience; but since it is His message, it must be interesting.
(Here we see his pastor’s heart and understanding of God’s will for him in every “mundane” hour!)
Burns (the author) speculates that perhaps if Newton’s father had shown the same amount of devotion, love, and piety as his mother, Newton might never had descended into the rebellious period he experienced before his conversion. “It is highly important that both parents should unite in the spiritual care of their children; that they may see their comfort and usefulness through life, and at last, present them with joy before the God and Father of all.”
And to that I must agree!! No amount of energy I exert over my children’s life can substitute for their father’s constant love and spiritual oversight. It is in parenting that I see so much of the wisdom and beauty of God’s design for the family. I am so glad I do not parent alone!
A brief biography of John Newton by John Piper
A small collection of Newton’s writings
I loved watching these people when we went to Giants’ games in SF.
